Patents by Inventor G. John Dick

G. John Dick has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 5909160
    Abstract: A sapphire resonator for an ultrastable oscillator capable of substantial performance improvements over the best available crystal quartz oscillators in a compact cryogenic package is based on a compensation mechanism enabled by the difference between copper and sapphire thermal expansion coefficients for so tuning the resonator as to cancel the temperature variation of the sapphire's dielectric constant. The sapphire resonator consists of a sapphire ring separated into two parts with webs on the outer end of each to form two re-entrant parts which are separated by a copper post. The re-entrant parts are bonded to the post by indium solder for good thermal conductivity between parts of that subassembly which is supported on the base plate of a closed copper cylinder (rf shielding casing) by a thin stainless steel cylinder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 1995
    Date of Patent: June 1, 1999
    Assignee: The United State of America as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
    Inventors: G. John Dick, David G. Santiago
  • Patent number: 5036299
    Abstract: Microwave oscilltors incorporate r.f. feedback with carrier suppression to reduce phase noise. In a direct feedback oscillator arrngement a circulator is interposed between the r.f. amplifier and the high-Q resonator. The amplifier output is applied to the slightly over-coupled input port of the resonator so that the resultant net return signal is the vectorial difference between the signals emitted and reflected from the resonator. The gain of the r.f. amplifier is chosen to regenerate the forward signal from the net return signal. In a STALO-type arrangement, the resonator is critically coupled and an r.f. amplifier added to the path of the net return signal. The sensitivity of the STALO-type feedback loop is thereby enhanced while added amplifier noise is minimized by the superposition of the signals emitted by and reflected from the resonator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 1990
    Date of Patent: July 30, 1991
    Assignee: California Institute of Technology
    Inventors: G. John Dick, Jonathan E. Saunders
  • Patent number: 5016869
    Abstract: A self-actuated spring-action human bipedal device includes a back-mounted frame attached to the upper torso of a user, and separate articulated right and left leg frames pivotally attached by U-joints to lower portions of the back frame. The user's feet are secured to the leg frames so the bottoms of the leg frames contact the ground, behind and below the point where each foot is attached to its leg frame. Endless cord-like main springs are engaged with a spring actuator, which are carried on the back frame. Left and right tension lines running from respective leg frames to the spring actuator are arranged so that compression of the leg frames, caused by the force of downward movement of the user's feet and torso, pulls on the tension lines to apply a pulling force to the spring actuator for stretching the main springs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 1990
    Date of Patent: May 21, 1991
    Assignee: Applied Motion
    Inventors: G. John Dick, Eric A. Edwards
  • Patent number: 4757278
    Abstract: A microwave oscillator is provided which can operate at a temperature of many degrees above absolute zero while providing very low phase noise that has heretofore generally required temperatures within a few degrees K. The oscillator includes a ring-shaped resonator element of ruby (sapphire plus chromium) or iron sapphire crystal, lying adjacent to a resonator element of sapphire, so the regenerator element lies directly in the magnetic field of the resonator element. The resonator element is substantially devoid of contact with electrically conductive material. Microwave energy of a pump frequency (e.g. 31GHz) is applied to the regenerator element, while signal energy (e.g. 10GHz) is outputted from the resonator element.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 5, 1987
    Date of Patent: July 12, 1988
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
    Inventor: G. John Dick
  • Patent number: 4006597
    Abstract: A superconducting microwave engine that achieves mechanical to microwave rgy conversion or microwave to mechanical energy conversion. Such is accomplished by employing a superconducting resonator to increase the decay time of the microwaves inside the resonator and thereby provide the resonator with sufficient time to adiabatically deform and change its eigenfrequency so as to effect a change in the frequency and corresponding energy state of such microwaves in accordance with the Boltzmann-Ehrenfest Theorm. This invention may be in the form of a cylindrical cavity and piston combination, a cavity and vibrating diaphragm combination, or a cylindrical cavity and concentric rotor combination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 1976
    Date of Patent: February 8, 1977
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventor: G. John Dick
  • Patent number: 3995433
    Abstract: A superconducting microwave engine that achieves mechanical to microwave rgy conversion or microwave to mechanical energy conversion. Such is accomplished by employing a superconducting resonator to increase the decay time of the microwaves inside the resonator and thereby provide the resonator with sufficient time to adiabatically deform and change its eigenfrequency so as to effect a change in the frequency and corresponding energy state of such microwaves in accordance with the Boltzmann-Ehrenfest Theorm. This invention may be in the form of a cylindrical cavity and piston combination, a cavity and vibrating diaphragm combination, or a cylindrical cavity and concentric rotor combination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 1976
    Date of Patent: December 7, 1976
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventor: G. John Dick
  • Patent number: 3983470
    Abstract: A superconducting microwave engine that achieves mechanical to microwave energy conversion or microwave to mechanical energy conversion. Such is accomplished by employing a superconducting resonator to increase the decay time of the microwaves inside the resonator and thereby provide the resonator with sufficient time to adiabatically deform and change its eigenfrequency so as to effect a change in the frequency and corresponding energy state of such microwaves in accordance with the Boltzmann-Ehrenfest Theorem. This invention may be in the form of a cylindrical cavity and piston combination, a cavity and vibrating diaphragm combination, or a cylindrical cavity and concentric rotor combination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 1975
    Date of Patent: September 28, 1976
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventor: G. John Dick